Implementation of the Directive Principles of State Policy in India

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Implementation of the Directive Principles of State Policy in India!

The Directive Principles of State Policy are embodied in Part IV of the Constitution from Articles 36 to 51. The features have been borrowed from the Irish Constitution. The Fundamental Rights enshrined in Part III of the Constitution from Articles 12 to 35, and the features have been adopted from the Constitution of USA. Granville Austin has described the Directive Principles and Fundamental Rights and the ‘Conscience of the Constitution’.

They together may reflect the constitutional conscience of India, but there are differences among them as well.

Fundamental Rights are negative as they act as limitations on the state but the Directive Principles are positive as they require the state to do certain things.

The Fundamental Rights are justiciable i.e., legally enforceable by courts in case of their violation but the Directive Principles are non-justiciable.

The Rights aims at establishing political democracy but social and economic democracy is sought to be secured by the principles.

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The Rights have legal sanctions and the principles ensure moral and political sanctions.

The Rights tend to secure welfare of the individual while welfare of the community is promotes by the principles. Almost all the Rights are directly enforceable but separate legislation is required for implementing the principles.

A law may be declared invalid if it violates any Fundamental Rights but a law violative of any of the Directive Principles cannot be declare as invalid.

Considering the various decisions of the Supreme Court regarding the primacy of Fundamental Rights and Directive principles of State Policy, at present the Fundamental Rights enjoy supremacy over the Directive Principles. However, this does not imply that Directive Principles cannot be implemented. Fundamental Rights may be amended by the Parliament to give effect to any Directive Principles so far the amendment is not affecting the basic structure of the Constitution.

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From 1950, onwards various programmes have been implemented to give effect to the Directive Principles. Some of them may identified as follows

v. The National Forest Policy (1988), aims at the protection, conservation and development of forests, etc.

There are several other enactments by the Central and State Governments to give effects to these principles. Inspite of the above steps by the central and state governments, the Directive principle of state policy have not been implemented fully due to lack of resources, socials, economic condition, and population.